--- title: Amazon Wants 280 Gas-Fired Generators in Falls Township, Pennsylvania. A New Jersey Mayor Says Her Town and Two Others Were Not Notified. description: Amazon seeks approval for 280 gas-fired backup generators in Pennsylvania, facing public scrutiny and environmental reviews amid local and state regulations. image: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/66525ec138843cc1ccb1c325/68c301ebaa36be33aa2af8f7_1a3f16114a452999cc4d7d6b36ae1602_Obedio%20march%20of%20progress.png --- [Skip to content](https://hs.getobedio.com/blog/amazon-wants-280-gas-fired-generators-in-falls-township-pennsylvania.-a-new-jersey-mayor-says-her-town-and-two-others-were-not-notified#main-content) [![Obedio logo with black text and an orange graphic composed of four circles and a diagonal arrow pointing up and right.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/66525ec138843cc1ccb1c325/66529844eddaa630d6da1b42_obedio%20gold%20for%20white%20background.png)](https://getobedio.com) [Team](https://www.getobedio.com/team) [Pricing](https://www.getobedio.com/pricing) [Contact](https://www.getobedio.com/demo) [Blog](https://www.getobedio.com/blog) [Login](https://obed.io/v4/login) Local Ordinance New Jersey Data Center # Amazon Wants 280 Gas-Fired Generators in Falls Township, Pennsylvania. A New Jersey Mayor Says Her Town and Two Others Were Not Notified. ![Obedio research](https://7528315.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/7528315/hubfs/raw_assets/public/mV0_d-cms-elevate-theme_hubspot/elevate/images/avatar-placeholder.jpg?width=48&height=48&name=avatar-placeholder.jpg) Obedio research October 2, 2026 Amazon Data Services, Inc. wants to add 280 natural gas-fired backup generators at its data center campus in Falls Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The Lower Bucks Times reported that each engine is rated at 4,287 horsepower. The state agency that must approve them is the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). It received 1,236 public comments, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on August 20. Recently, the mayor of Florence Township, New Jersey, told her council that DEP will not rule until it reads those comments. She also said three towns across the Delaware River were not told about a noise variance for the site. They are Florence, Bordentown City and Fieldsboro. A variance is permission to break a normal rule, here a township noise limit. LevittownNow reported that the township zoning board approved a noise variance in August 2024. The developer, NorthPoint Development, asked for it. Nothing is settled. The records we reviewed show no DEP decision on the generators. On August 18, Governor Josh Shapiro signed Executive Order 2026-05. It took data centers off the state's fast permit track. The Inquirer reported that DEP was still reviewing the generator application. ## At a Glance - **Item:** An air permit for 280 gas-fired and 3 diesel generators at Amazon's data center campus in Falls Township. The Lower Bucks Times gave the DEP application number as 09-0261A. - **Status:** Public comment is closed. The Florence Township mayor said DEP will not decide until it reviews the comments. We found no decision. - **Applicant:** Amazon Data Services, Inc. The site is the Keystone Trade Center, a former U.S. Steel property, at 600 Ben Fairless Drive. It covers about 250 acres. - **Power plan:** Grid power from PECO Energy, the local electric utility, with generators as backup. The Florence Township mayor said she was told the generators are for emergencies only. - **Key figures:** 280 gas engines at 4,287 horsepower each. 3 diesel engines. 1,236 public comments. A petition with nearly 5,000 signatures. Peak water demand of 4.4 million gallons a day, per LevittownNow. - **Public response:** A July 14 town hall at Pennsbury East High School drew hundreds of residents. LevittownNow said it ran nearly four hours. The Lower Bucks Times described a two-hour session. On July 27, Falls Township supervisors started a 180-day zoning rewrite. - **Next decisions:** The DEP permit. A township zoning rewrite expected in late January 2027. State utility rules that the governor's order calls for. ## What Amazon Is Asking DEP to Approve The application covers two kinds of backup engines. The Lower Bucks Times listed 280 natural gas engines at 4,287 horsepower each. It also listed 3 diesel engines of 2,360, 609 and 398 horsepower. Another 76 diesel generators are already on the site. WHYY added these up to 359 generators in all. The Lower Bucks Times reported that DEP received the application on April 13, 2026. The Inquirer reported that public comment closed on Monday, August 17, with 1,236 comments. WHYY reported that the permit calls the site a "synthetic minor" source. That means its emissions are held under set caps. The Lower Bucks Times said nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds must each stay under 25 tons a year. DEP gave WHYY this comparison: > "The annual emissions from Amazon are projected to be similar to the various hospitals, universities and snack food manufacturing facilities that we already have in Pennsylvania." The Florence Township mayor said she called DEP's regional director. She was told the generators would run only in emergencies. Her question was whose emergency. If the grid runs short, she asked, do the data centers leave the grid and make their own power? Or does an emergency mean a blackout? She said no one could answer. ## The Records Differ on Size, Counts and Dates The public record gives different numbers for the same project. Here they are, with sources. - **Building space.** The Inquirer and Philadelphia.Today reported about 2 million square feet in 10 buildings. LevittownNow reported nearly 3 million. The Lower Bucks Times reported over 3 million. WHYY reported up to 10 new buildings plus 1 million square feet of reused warehouse space. - **Generator count.** Philadelphia.Today reported over 200 gas-fired generators. Keystone Newsroom reported nearly 300. The Lower Bucks Times and WHYY reported 280 gas-fired and 3 diesel. - **Jobs.** LevittownNow reported that Amazon projects 1,550 jobs at the Falls Township site. WHYY reported about 1,250 permanent jobs for the Falls Township and Salem Township projects together. The records do not explain the gap. - **Existing diesel generators.** The Inquirer reported 72 previously approved. WHYY and the Lower Bucks Times reported 76 on the site. - **Comment period.** A DEP notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on April 25, 2026 set a May 25 deadline, the PA Environment Digest reported. The Lower Bucks Times and LevittownNow reported a 30-day period that began July 18. The records do not explain the two dates. - **Petition size.** WHYY reported more than 4,000 signatures in July. The Lower Bucks Times reported more than 3,800 in its July 29 report. The Inquirer reported nearly 5,000 on August 20. ## Water and Power LevittownNow reported that John Warenda Jr. of the Morrisville Municipal Authority gave the water figures at the July 14 town hall. They were about 19,000 gallons of drinking water a day. LevittownNow said that is what 70 homes use. Peak demand was 4.4 million gallons a day. The Lower Bucks Times called the 4.4 million figure peak cooling demand. LevittownNow also reported what project officials said. Cooling uses outside air about 94 percent of the year. Water is used only in the hottest periods. There are no cooling towers. Keystone Newsroom reported that Amazon has asked to draw up to 4.4 million gallons a day from the river. Chairman Dence said in township minutes that the project would not use township water. Glenn Murphy of PECO told the town hall, "No reliability issues are anticipated for Falls Township or the wider area," LevittownNow reported. Amazon said it pays for the grid upgrades. LevittownNow reported that a speaker at the town hall, Anthony Paul Pinto, said no community benefit agreement has been signed. That is a written deal in which a developer promises things such as jobs or payments to the town. ## The Noise Variance In August 2024, LevittownNow reported that the Falls Township zoning hearing board approved a noise variance at the Keystone Trade Center. The applicant was NorthPoint Development. The tenant was not named. The Florence Township mayor ties the variance to the Amazon site. Jeremy Michael, NorthPoint's director of development, said normal noise at the site is in the high 50s to low 60s in decibels. It spikes when generators are tested. Attorney Bryce McGuigan said the building would have features to cut noise. Amazon now says the campus will be quieter than the industrial park around it, WHYY reported. Keystone Newsroom reported that the nearly 300 planned generators are rated at 65 decibels. That is about the sound of a passing city bus. The Florence Township mayor said DEP does not control sound. The township does. She said people at the July meeting were told that studies found no residents within 5,000 feet of the property. One mile is 5,280 feet. She said Fieldsboro is about a mile away. She said her town, Bordentown City and Fieldsboro are all closer than any Falls Township resident. She said she learned of the variance only recently. She asked the Falls Township administrator about it. In her account, he said the noise would not be heard and would not be so bad. He pointed to Ashburn, Virginia, where data centers are all over town. She said she would like to go to Ashburn to hear it. ## What the Governor's Order Changed Governor Shapiro signed Executive Order 2026-05 on August 18. His office said it removes data center projects from the state's Permit Fast Track program. It also says DEP will not issue permits until a project has all required local approvals. Developers must agree to the Governor's Responsible Infrastructure Development (GRID) requirements. These cover energy costs, talks with residents, local jobs, and environmental and water rules. TechInformed reported that Amazon's Falls Township and Salem Township sites must come off the Fast Track list. Those sites are part of the $20 billion Pennsylvania plan that Shapiro announced in June 2025. The Inquirer reported that the order removes Amazon's project from the fast track. It said DEP was still reviewing the generator permit. It also reported that five environmental permits have been approved to date. Philadelphia.Today reported that the first phase has local and state approvals. LevittownNow reported that DEP finished the first phase of environmental permits in July 2025. The coverage we reviewed does not say how the order affects the pending permit. ## What Falls Township Has Done Falls Township approved the project in March 2025, the Inquirer and the Lower Bucks Times reported. Separately, township minutes record supervisors voting 3-0 to approve a professional services agreement with Amazon Data Services. The minutes give no meeting date. The township solicitor still had to give final approval. Under the agreement, Amazon pays the township's review costs. On July 27, supervisors declared part of Chapter 209 of the zoning ordinance "substantively invalid," the Lower Bucks Times reported. That starts a 180-day period to rewrite the data center rules. Township Solicitor Lauren Gallagher called it a "protective measure for any substantive validity challenge," Keystone Newsroom reported. Supervisor John Palmer said, "We heard the people." The vote does not stop the Amazon project. The Lower Bucks Times reported that state law limits what the township can require. A revised code is expected in late January 2027. Drafts go to the township and Bucks County planning commissions before a public hearing. Amanda Westerman brought the local petition to supervisors. She told them, in township minutes, that it drew 700 signatures in 24 hours and later passed 3,800. She asked for a 180-day pause on new data center applications. She also asked for 30 days of public notice before applications are filed. ## What the New Jersey Towns Are Doing The Florence Township mayor is working with the mayors of Bordentown City and Fieldsboro. They want a meeting with the Delaware River Basin Commission. Its members include the governors of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Delaware. They also want to meet engineers from OmniCore. She said this is hard because the project is outside their jurisdiction. She got the three towns onto a distribution list so they can see decisions as they come. She plans to file Right to Know requests with Falls Township and is speaking with her town attorney. A council representative said she would share what the mayor receives with Rutgers University, which wants to review the studies. ## Timeline | Date | Event | | --- | --- | | August 2024 | Zoning board approves a noise variance for NorthPoint Development at the site. | | March 2025 | Falls Township approves the project. | | June 2025 | Governor Shapiro announces Amazon's $20 billion Pennsylvania plan. | | July 2025 | DEP finishes the first phase of environmental permits. | | April 13, 2026 | DEP receives the generator application. | | April 25, 2026 | Pennsylvania Bulletin notice sets a May 25 comment deadline. | | July 14, 2026 | Town hall at Pennsbury East High School. | | July 18, 2026 | A 30-day comment period begins. | | July 27, 2026 | Supervisors start a 180-day rewrite of the data center rules. | | August 17, 2026 | Public comment closes with 1,236 comments. | | August 18, 2026 | Governor signs Executive Order 2026-05. | | Late January 2027 | Township rewrite of data center rules expected. | ## Why It Matters for Site Selectors and Developers The generator permit is the step still open. The Lower Bucks Times reported that the project has local approvals and construction continues. State rules changed in the middle of a project. Pennsylvania now says DEP will not issue permits until local approvals are in hand. Developers should check whether their local approvals will hold up and whether the state counts them as covered. Three New Jersey towns across the river are working together to get a meeting with the Delaware River Basin Commission. The Florence Township mayor plans to file public records requests, and Bordentown City asked DEP for information. A site near a state line may want outreach past its own town. Residents have raised water and noise at public meetings. LevittownNow reported 19,000 gallons a day of drinking water and 4.4 million gallons a day at peak demand. ## The Risks and Obstacles **The generator permit is not final.** We found no DEP decision on application 09-0261A. **The order's effect on the permit is unstated.** The coverage we reviewed does not say how the governor's order affects the pending generator permit. **Noise rules are unclear.** The Florence Township mayor said she is still trying to learn what the 2024 variance allows. **A community benefit agreement has not been reported.** A speaker at the town hall said none has been signed. The governor's order asks developers for local hiring and community commitments. **Future projects face new rules.** The township rewrite does not stop Amazon's project. ## What to Watch - DEP's decision on application 09-0261A for the 280 gas-fired and 3 diesel generators. - The Falls Township zoning rewrite. Counting 180 days from the July 27 vote gives about January 23, 2027. The Lower Bucks Times expects a revised code in late January. - Whether the Delaware River Basin Commission agrees to meet the three New Jersey mayors. - The Right to Know requests the Florence Township mayor plans to file about the noise variance. - State Public Utility Commission rules on who pays grid costs. TechInformed reported that the governor's order directs officials to seek them. - The first sections of the campus. LevittownNow reported that an Amazon official said at the July 14 town hall that they are expected to operate by the fourth quarter of 2026. 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